Immortal Beloved II

Thirty-Five

GISING na si Mac nang magmulat ng mga mata si Bryce. Nakatagilid ito at pinapanood siyang matulog. She smiled at him, automatically moving her body closer to his.

"Morning," he said before lowering his head to hers. The kiss was light and playful, at bumungisngis siya bago bumalot sa leeg nito ang mga braso niya.

"What time is it?" she asked sleepily as she let him nuzzle her throat.

"5:30," sagot nito. "We still have a lot of time."

She clung to him as his kisses deepened, as his fingers slid through her hair, down her throat, her shoulders to cup her breast over her shirt. She arched her back when he started to pull the fabric off her body. Nagtungo sa laylayan ng shirt ni Mac ang mga kamay niya, desperadong humaplos sa matitigas na kalamnan.

But as soon as they pulled their shirts off, nagsimulang mag-ring ang telepono ni Bryce. No, not her personal phone, her burner phone, ang teleponong sina Cam, Mac at Nick pa lang ang may alam ng numero. Nagkatinginan sila. Nagkibit si Mac, then lowered his head to her breast. He teased her nipple with his nose first before he drew it into his mouth.

She moaned, sliding her fingers into his hair, letting her phone ring.

"Aren't you going to answer that?" he asked, licking her skin.

"Shit," she said and took the phone from the nightstand. "Hello?"

"Bryce," sabi ng tinig ni Nick. "May pupuntahan tayo. Meet me at Starbucks sa San Antonio Plaza at 6 AM No need to bring a car."

Ni hindi siya nito hinintay na pumayag. Tinapos nito ang tawag. Frustrated niyang tiningnan ang phone bago binalingan si Mac na nakapatong ang baba sa sikmura niya. "Pinapapunta niya ako sa San Antonio Plaza nang ala sais. That's it."

Bumuntong-hininga si Mac. "Client," anito. "You do what you need to do."

Umingit si Bryce at mahinang tumawa ang fiancé niya. He moved up and kissed her again. "Go ahead. Gusto mong ihatid kita?"

"Please?"

"Of course."

He moved away from her and she sighed. Inabot niya rito ang phone niya. "Alam ko may tracker sa dog tag ko pero can you program a tracker app dito sa phone? Para alam mo rin kung nasaan ako."

Kinuha nito ang telepono. "Sige. Maligo ka na. Gagawa ako ng breakfast."

He climbed out of bed and bent down to pick his shirt up. Pero bago pa man iyon magawa ng lalaki, niyakap na ito ni Bryce sa baywang at idinikit ang hubad niyang dibdib sa likod nito. She ran a line of kisses across his shoulder and smiled against his skin when she felt him tense. She moved her mouth up the side of his neck to his ear. Then she whispered, "Quickie?"

Tumili siya at tumawa nang biglang kumilos si Mac, inihiga siya at dinaganan.

---

"I'LL SEE you later," sabi ni Bryce matapos halikan si Mac sa mga labi. She smiled, climbed out of the SUV na ginamit nito para ihatid siya, and closed the door.

Hindi niya kailangang hanapin si Nick. Agad niya itong nakita. Nakasuot ito ng jeans, puting T-shirt at sneakers. And he was leaning against the hood of a black BMW Z4.

Pinapanood siya nito, naka-angat ang isang sulok ng mga labi. Was he expecting her to be impressed with his car? Her fiancé had a Porsche 911 GT3, so no, not really.

"I'm here," sabi niya. "What do you want?"

Bumuga ito ng hangin. "That's a loaded question. You really want me to answer that?"